Madness (a SoMa fic)
by BelleNamikaze
Summary: Rated MA for later chapters. - After Soul Eater left she had to pick up the pieces and prove to everyone what she was made of. She was hurt, but not broken. But when he returns..
1. Chapter 1

**_Chapter One_**

_When Faraway Just Isn't Far Enough._

* * *

"If you would chop the carrots as fast as you're running your mouth right now, we wouldn't have a problem." She shot him an intense glare before turning her attention back to the task at hand.

"Not cool, Maka."

"No, Soul, you're not cool! You are not being cool AT ALL!"

Jeez, what was her problem?

Maka opened the fridge and pulled out one gallon of milk and three eggs. The way she slammed them on the counter had Soul Eater expecting them to crack open and spill everywhere. She was always like this toward the end of the school year. Every year was the same damn thing over and over for as long as he'd known her. It was getting old; really old, really fast. The little things would set her off completely and twist the situation into the complete opposite direction of their friendship.

The rest of the day brought arguments on top of arguments for the duo and soon Soul Eater came to the conclusion it was time to take a break from their friendship. He packed up some things and left, staying with Black Star for a while. Maka's grades nearly flushed completely down the toilet and her soul was all out of sorts. She was forced to go on assignments with her dad because she was nowhere near compatible with anyone else. She even had a hard time with him as their wave lengths never peaked; they were never on the same page, and she never used "Witch Hunter" again.

The hiatus was overdrawn and Maka didn't hear from Soul Eater for what seemed like forever, but was really a span of 7 months. Death suggested she get another partner and try to hone what skills she had left. Maka would only refuse and demand to go solo; a partner just wasn't cool enough for her anymore.

Death chose to add in that Soul Eater Evans was leaving on a two-year extended assignment with Black Star and Tsubaki. Spirit expected to see fire flow out of her ears, but there was no such result. Instead, she just waved it off and kept walking toward the door, "Not interested."

Spirit watched over his daughter like a hawk; literally. The years passed slowly and agonizingly for both he and his daughter. Only then did he notice the severity of her disappointment in him for leaving her mother. It was like watching what he and her mother went through from a front row seat. Maka was hurting more and more every day. She couldn't match wave lengths with anyone and it didn't look like she and Soul were going to be patching things up anytime soon.

Spirit wiped away his tears in an attempt to regain his composure. He had to be strong for Maka. He was determined to show her that not all break ups ended the same and that she could be strong and confident.

Maka walked down the main corridor of the academy. She was no longer a student, but a well-developed scythe handler. Although she never found another partner to match her wave lengths, Death said it could be due to an emotional backlash of Souls sudden departure. Figures, he always messed things up. She now assumed her position as Death the Kid's right hand woman. NO; that did not mean she was his girlfriend. So many had asked...

She didn't see the young man in that kind of light; she didn't see anyone in that light. She ran a hand through her now long blonde hair and sighed. Her green eyes flickered up at the sound of her father choking on his own spit on the opposite side of the hallway. There stood another idiot…

She dully stared at him and shook her head. "Dad. Breathe." Spirit stood erect and stuttered slightly, "I-I'm fine dear, really!"

"What are you doing here?"

"Um, well I'm here to make sure you're okay. I'd heard Death called you in for another mission."

"I'm 19 years old dad. I don't need you to 'check' on me."

"But you'll always be daddy's little girl!" She shut the door in his face and proceeded to walk to Death's throne.

"Maka! So nice to see you!"

"Hello." She smiled falsely and tilted her head to the side. Kid was seated next to his father with his feet propped up. As soon as he laid eyes on Maka he smirked, "Hello, Maka."

Maka blushed lightly and nodded her acknowledgements to him.

"I need you to stand in for my son. He is going on an assignment and I need extra security around here. We are expecting some heavy characters within the next few days so I need my best on their toes."

"Of course Lord Death." Maka smiled and nodded, "When do you need me."

"Now would be great." Her green eyes met Kidd's before averting to floor. He stood and walked by her, his shadow being near six foot now. His hand cupped her chin, "I need to get going and I trust you to do my bidding properly and symmetrically while I'm away."

"Of course."

He kissed her cheek lightly before exiting the room gracefully. "Such a lady's man, isn't he?" Death commented and patted the seat next to him, "Come, sit." Maka sat next to him and gave him her undivided attention.

"How have you been, Miss Albarn?"

Maka smiled at his formality and shrugged, "I've been good, I guess. What about you?"

"Oh excellent." Death smiled and nodded, "Ya' know you never cease to amaze me, Maka. You have prevailed here without a weapon. And it's a Meister and Weapon Academy."

"That's only because you let me stay."

"Right, well I had great confidence in your skills. Though it puzzles me how your soul refuses to accept any of the weapons here... I am genuinely worried Maka."

"I'm sure it's nothing..." Maka stared off into a distant part of the room. All conversation ceased and she relaxed into the soft chair.

'Who needs a weapon anyway? Just someone to baby sit! We don't need that!'

Maka's eyes widened and her body froze completely. Death, who was observing from the outside, had his greatest fears confirmed. "Maka, we need to do something..."

However, she paid no mind to whatever he was saying. Hell, she couldn't even hear him. This new yet familiar voice was looming over everything that her mind attempted to processed. Her eyes fixated themselves on the floor and she zoned out completely.

She took herself to her 'happy place', if you will, though it was empty now that Soul was gone. Just a meadow that stretched for miles with flowers and butterflies, it was now barren and dry. She stood staring at the cracked dirt beneath her feet and the wilted, black flowers around her. Standing in front of her was the origination of the voice. It was like looking in a mirror…almost. Only the girl before her was much paler and her eyes were a deep red, obviously something evil. It was her choice whether she allowed herself to be taken by it or not.

'Who are you?'

"I'm you...'

'No... you're not...I'm me...'

'I'm who you need to be.'

Maka locked eyes with her before being pulled back to reality by the now very worried Death. "Maka? Maka, are you okay?! Stay with me, Maka...!" He was shaking her profusely and only stopped when she gasped for air. It was getting worse, as Stein said it would, soon she wouldn't be able to tell the difference between reality and fiction. Her eyes burned and her soul hurt as if being sucked into a vacuum cleaner.

"I'll call Stein-"

"NO!- I mean.. no, he'll just tell me what I already know..."

Death looked at her helplessly before sitting back down in his large chair. "I'm at my wits end with you Maka. Spirit is worried sick about you... we need you to sync with someone else's soul, it could be good for you. Maybe even help your condition. Don't be stubborn Maka..."

Maka sighed as her nerves and reflexes relaxed once more. She had episodes like that at least four times a week, it seemed they were becoming more frequent now. It was the same girl at her center and she couldn't make herself ask any of the important questions, she always asked 'Who are you?'. Maka felt her sanity beginning to slip once again, but she gripped onto herself tightly and regained brief composure.

"Who are we expecting this week, Lord Death?"

"Oh well, let's see...There should be a lot of students checking in from assignments and stuff. I really just wanted company." He smiled and in turn so did she. Never had she met a happier man in her life.

* * *

Spirit walked Maka home that evening with his hands in his pockets. His shoulders were slightly slumped and his eyes half lidded. Maka couldn't bring herself to express her concerns for his obvious disposition. She assumed that if it were her business he would let her know. And of course, he did.

"Death told me you had another 'episode' today."

Maka gave no response. She only looked forward and continued walking until they reached her apartment. "See you tomorrow then, Maka..." She nodded and unlocked the door slowly. Upon entering she took a shower and found something small to snack on. Her room was plain now that she graduated from the academy. There were no calendars hanging up, no sticky notes, no posters, and no pictures...

She sat at her desk and stared at the blank space on the wall where her and Soul used to hang their pictures together. Wasn't like they were dating or anything... they were just best friends until...

Maka shook her head and finished eating before settling in for the night.

The following day some officials from far off took Death for a meeting leaving her to take care of the office. In her eyes, it was a true privilege to be so trusted by Lord Death. She tried to smile even though she knew everyone around her noticed what she did upon waking that morning. Her eyes were no longer green, but now red. Slowly she was managing to fade into the abyss without a lantern. First her eyes, then what? Her skin color? Was she going to turn pasty? Lose her sanity completely?

She turned the over-sized chair so the large back was facing the door and she was watching the world through Death's mirror. Her mind began to fade out again, almost like a deep sleep coming over her. Death's meeting must have lasted for, what felt like to her, hours. She was brought back by the loud shut of the heavy doors to the office. Her back was sore from being in the same position for so long but she knew if it were Death she had to remove her ass from his seat and judging by the footsteps it was him and the officials returning.

Maka managed to swirl the chair around to face the oncoming group. She stopped and her red eyes narrowed on the blue headed man waving his arm.

"You don't look like Lord Death at all, who are you?"

He didn't recognize her? He had the audacity to step back into this city without remembering her face! She sat forward with a new found sense of rage and irritation. The red in her eyes made her skin seem whiter and her glare a lot more intense. Sure enough, Tsubaki was in tow with her mouth hung open.

"N-no... n-not you..." She stuttered out and stared at Maka. Maka snarled and then her eyes locked on another pair of red ones. "Maka?" His voice met her ears and made her head ring.

The doors opened once again and Stein stepped in with Death. "Ahh, you have returned!" Death seemed as thrilled as ever. Stein walked past them, obviously more worried about Maka.

"How are you feeling today Maka?"

"Same as every day."

"Glad to hear." He took a step forward and examined her eyes. His own eyes widened and he shook his head. "Stop by my office when you're done here."

Maka nodded and Death patted her head lightly. "Thank you, Maka. You can go now if you'd like..." He could sense the tension in the room.


	2. Chapter 2

_**Chapter Two**_

_I know it's a rush but Life's mistress is Time, and she's not kind for you or me._

* * *

Of course, he had to return the week she had been chosen to help Lord Death and his son. How ironic, really? Three years of complete absence from her life and now he just swings open a door and waltzes right in; literally. Though she didn't want to verbalize the extent of her discontent, five more minute in his presence and she would have committed a felony. She chose not to think about it and to focus on her errands at hand. Stein requested her in his office. But to be completely honest she couldn't see herself going that evening though she knew if she neglected to arrive he would simply come and find her. Might as well get it over with.

Maka rolled her eyes and casually walked the halls of the academy. In some ways she understood everyone's great concern. If it were a friend in her position she would be worried also. Her mind wandered back to Soul Eater, and how he seemed to have almost the same problem once upon a time. Maka understood the clear difference between her and Soul Eater Evans, just seeing his eyes in Lord Death's office reminded her of why she couldn't do everything he could. Soul just had so much fight in him; he had always been stronger than she is so many ways that she didn't want to admit. It was true.

Maka stood at the entrance to Stein's office and, reluctantly, she gave a gentle knock. He opened the door quietly and stepped aside for her, "Come in, Maka." She stepped in and took her usual seat ever so gracefully. "Make yourself comfortable, we need to talk."

"Ok." She sat and propped her feet up on his desk, and crossed her arms.

"Maka, I'm not sure you realize how serious this situation is..." She opened her mouth to speak but was interrupted by the door opening once again and Spirit walking in. Great. She sighed heavily, awaiting the lecture she was about to receive. Although, it didn't seem like Spirit was in much of a lecturing mood. He leaned against the desk allowing Stein to continue.

"Do you understand what is happening, Maka?"

"Yes."

"Then you must know you don't have long before it's too late..."

Maka looked at Stein through half lidded eyes and slumped her cheek against her hand. What he was saying had been said many, many times before. She hated reruns.

"Maka, sweetheart…you're doing this to yourself."

Her eyes narrowed and she straighten in her seat. How dare he lecture her about this! The audacity of this man was really something.

"I can handle my own situation, I'm tired of hearing all of these lectures. I understand you are concerned, Stein, but there is nothing we can do that hasn't been tried already." She stood, prepared to leave and Spirit blocked the door.

"NO. Everything has not been done. You will stop acting like your mother and cooperate completely, do you understand me? " His eyes were hard and his voice was firm, something Maka wasn't used to hearing from her father. "You are an independent young woman, I understand that, but you cannot take what went on between your mother and I, and punish yourself for it. I will not let you. I spoke to Lord Death about it, along with Soul Eater, " Maka's eyes narrowed at the mention of him, "and you will be housing on the other side of the city with Soul Eater."

If looks could kill Spirit knew he'd be a dead man in that very moment. Maka was definitely her mother's daughter, but he couldn't go back now, it had to be said and something had to be done. "Any objections?"

Maka shook her head and gritted her teeth. "It'll get better, Maka. I promise. Soul Eater is different now, you two can learn a lot from each other."

She walked out of his office and to the housing department where they gave her a key and a map of the new complex. Apparently it was newly built that month and overly large. 'Great, just when I memorized the other building this shit is happening. Never can I EVER catch a break...'

The process of transporting her things had been rather tedious. No one was in the new housing complex which surprised her, she expected to see Soul Eaters ugly mug. Well, maybe not ugly...

Upon arriving she immediately noticed all of the upgrades. "Why isn't my house upgraded like this...?" She mumbled to herself. The floors were beautifully tiled, EVERY wall in the place adorned red, the kitchen counters were black granite, and the appliances were all stainless steel. The place was absolutely beautiful, minus all the red. She walked into the living area and gasped at the large, black, leather sectional that graced her view. "Maybe I should be moving shit out of here and putting it in my house..." The corner tables and coffee tables were tinted glass with detailed dragons molded into them.

The tiled floors were cold on her feet as she gently took her shoes off and sat on the couch. For a split second she thought about not getting up and forcing Soul to pack her things up stairs. Sounded like a plan to her, but then she remembered that there was no way in hell she would ever allow that snob to touch her stuff. Jerk.

Before she packed her belongings upstairs, she decided to explore just a tiny bit. The stairs were made of glass; god forbid someone fall on them. The railings which lined the stairs were actually a large spiraling piece of marble that had been carved and detailed to look like a dragon. Carefully, she touched it and arched an eyebrow. What was it with all these dragons around the house? Since when did Soul Eater get into dragons?

Maka continued up the stairs and through all of the redness of the house she spotted a small blotch of white showing through the crack of a door down the hall. That must be her room. The only thing in the house that wasn't red. She walked into the room and examined every inch. The floors were still black marble, but she could deal with that. It was the walls that mattered most, way too much red for one house.

After some plotting to recolor half the house she managed to pull her things into the room and situate everything within three hours. In those three hours, however, no one showed up. Maka began to wonder if she was ever going to be graced with Soul Eaters presence. She rolled her eyes slightly, it had probably been for the best seeing as though she wanted to kill him.

Skillfully, she hung her favorite mirror up on the wall and paused at her reflection. It didn't matter how much she slept, the dark circles remained and became even darker. Maka sighed, sat on her bed and rubbed her eyes. It wouldn't be long now; she could feel it drawling to an end. Being placed in the same house as Soul Eater Evans was only going to speed up the process, apparently people thought it had been easy living with him. She heard the downstairs front door open and close. Great. Her small hand shut the bedroom door and she laid back on the newly sheeted bed. "Maybe he'll get the hint..." She mumbled to herself and closed her eyes, but really? When did Soul ever catch a hint?

She heard heavy footsteps ascending the stair case and then down the hall in her direction. Maka held her breath when the footsteps stopped outside of her door. There was no knock, only the click of the knob and the squeak of the door met her ears.

"Maka?" Whose voice was that? Maka opened one eye out of curiosity and then the other out of shock. She hadn't heard him speak since his return. It certainly had been something new. "What?"

"I brought some food if you're hungry." That being said, he turned and she heard him walk back down the stairs. She closed her eyes again and took a deep breath. His voice stuck in her head like some new ringtone and played on her nerves. Maka couldn't deny that it sounded much better than before, it wasn't as whiny. She smiled slightly and shook her head. Who would've thought Soul Eater would have such a deep, heavy, commanding voice. Back in the day he would've said it didn't sound cool.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three**

_Father knows best._

* * *

Maka stayed held up in her room like some kind of stubborn school girl, she really had not wished to be 'blessed' with his company. Unfortunately, she was hungry and her belly had a strong mind of its own, no matter how crazy she may have been going. She forced herself to climb out of bed, she changed into her pjs and fixed her hair before leaving the room. She may not have wanted to see him but that didn't mean she had to look like a complete skank.

Her footsteps were very, very light and barely noticeable as she cascaded down the glass staircase and into the kitchen. Maka took a step back ready to run back upstairs at the sight of Soul as he rummaged through the fridge. She folded her arms over her chest and leaned against the wall waiting for him to exit the kitchen patiently. She tried to keep her eyes averted to the floor but found it hard to rip her gaze away from his tattooed back. He'd spent too much time with Black Star, tattoos used to be so uncool, but to tell the truth ink looked really good on Soul Eater. Maka shook the thoughts from her head and remained silent, like a mouse in the corner. However, she didn't fail to notice the detail put into the tattoo, obviously it was another dragon but there seemed to be something written inside of it. Maka couldn't make it out before Soul shut the fridge and turned on his heels. He stopped, popping his can of Coke open, and stared into her eyes without blinking.

Maka shifted her uncomfortable weight to the opposite foot and looked to the other side of the kitchen as if unamused. Soul took heavy steps by her and went on about the house. She didn't move until she heard him sit down on the couch. Maka found the Chinese food which had been placed in the microwave for freshness purposes, and prepared herself a plate. Slowly she began to relax until Soul Eater walked back into the kitchen and leaned on the bar.

"So, are you gonna' be alright."

"Just fine." Her answers were short and snippy. By no means was she ready to hold a conversation with the guy that broke her hear- She bit her lip. He didn't break her heart, he ruined her trust completely by walking out on their friendship the way he did. Friendship, nothing more.

The microwave dinged and she pulled the hot food out and placed it on the bar. Soul smirked and grabbed her hand. "Ya' know, you don't look fine." Maka pulled her hand away and shook her head. "Stop before you make me lose my appetite..." Unintentionally, she gave him a pleading look before taking the food up to her room. She ate quickly and sat her food down on the night stand beside her bed. Maka grabbed the plush pillow and hugged it to her as she began to sob silently. He really was some kind of jerk...

The next morning Maka showered and walked down stairs. Soul was standing in the kitchen eating an apple. "Morning, Maka." She nodded in acknowledgment and poured herself a glass of milk. "You feelin' any better?"

"I told you I'm fine..."

"Sure, sure." He bit into the apple, "What do you have to do today?"

"Nothing..." Maka downed her glass of milk and headed for the door only to have Soul block it, which wasn't hard for his now seemingly large body. "So why are you leaving then?"

Maka narrowed her eyes at him to which Soul retaliated by raising his brows and staring her down, "Don't get an attitude. Lock yourself in your room all damn day and expect me to just let you walk out... pshh. Kinda' man you think I am?"

"Soul can you...please...just..." Maka kept her eyes to the floor and did not dare look at him, "Just let me go..."

"Where ya' goin?"

"I don't have to answer to you."

"Then I would really like to see you move me." There it was, out in the open. His eyes were much darker red than hers, and his teeth much sharper. Just what did her father think this would accomplish? No it wouldn't work! He was the last person she needed any help from.

"MOVE." She stood firmly toe to toe with him.

"NO."

Maka huffed lightly and turned to head back up to her room. Who the hell did he think he was anyway?! He couldn't tell her where she could and couldn't go! The nerve! She slammed her bedroom door and plopped down on the bed feeling defeated. Now she remembered why she couldn't stand Soul Eater Evans, he told her 'no' all the time.

Maka stayed in her room and moped around. Every time she heard footsteps she would hop in the bed and cover up like some small scared child. Anything to keep from having to talk to him again. Maka stood and played with her hair in the mirror. It had been fading and losing its shine and volume much like her eyes. She sighed and jumped back a few feet when her bedroom door opened, "K-knock next time!"

"My bad, you okay? I was being an asshole earlier." He stepped into the room and grabbed the front of her shirt to and gently pulled her over in front of him. "Look, I have nothin' against you Maka, we were so cool back in the day. Dunno' what's goin' on really, but I mean- "His eyebrows furrowed and he tilted his head to the side. Disregarding her obvious discomfort, he grabbed her face in his hands.

"The hell are you doing?!"

"You're eyes..." Maka pulled away and looked back into the mirror. Her jaw dropped a few inches at least, "H-how?" Maka's eyes were once again a vibrant green. Maka had been certain that the situation was quite opposite only moments ago. What was going on? Maybe her dad wasn't as crazy as she'd always thought. Maybe there really was hope in the form of Soul Eater Evans; The death scythe.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four**

_Two weeks later._

* * *

There had been really nothing more gross than doing Soul's laundry. Especially since Maka detested his very existence! Ever since he had run off with Black Star and Tsubaki he had been acting like he was some kind of GOD. Maka rolled her eyes and thought of Black Star, "That must be where he got it from..." She mumbled to herself. "Still the nerve of that jackass, to just dump his clothes in the laundry room like they were going to do themselves..." Her teeth gritted in annoyance.

"You look flustered, must be thinkin' about me, huh Maka?"

Maka jumped at the sound of his voice. "DON'T DO THAT!" He laughed at her discomfort and leaned on the door frame.

"Be careful, I don't think we have a door frame in this house strong enough to hold your ego, jackass."

"Not cool, Maka."

"Not- excuse you?"

Soul crossed his muscular uncovered arms and arched an eyebrow. "What's your problem anyway?"

"I don't have one."

"You're making this impossible. You never used to be like this."

"Haven't you heard?" Maka laughed as if talking to herself, "I'm going nuts."

"Well it's your fault"

"MY-my fault?" Maka had to bring her voice down an octave in order to finish her sentence and not echo the laundry room.

"Yeah."

"How dare you preach at me. I am washing YOUR underwear. Your grown man ass underwear and you have the audacity to pester me and stink up my bubble with your bull. If anyone is at fault it's all of you idiots surrounding me, I've had enough." He uncrossed his arms and stood up straight walking toward her, "had enough, huh?" He had a mocking tone and his form towered over her, "What did I do, Maka?"

Her head dropped slightly and she hesitated before having shaken off what she really wanted to say to him and walked past him, "Nothing, forget it."

"Really? All of this sass and you're holding back on me now?"

She ignored him and kept walking until she reached her bedroom door. She placed her forehead against the cold surface and fought back the tears that threatened to breech the surface. How could she ever find any kind of hope in the little boy who she used to know? How could she be so pathetic, to just sit and wait for his return to save her from the darkness. Nothing could save her from the darkness instilled within her mind, not even him.

"Why do you keep walking away from me?" Maka jerked and stumbled, almost falling on her ass. She didn't even hear him come up the stairs! With all of that weight how had he been so quiet?!

"Will you stop!?" That did it. Her voice had more of a shrill sound to it. Her attempts to keep the tears back weren't holding through very strongly. "Just leave me alone, okay?! I can deal with this myself, I don't need anyone's help!"

Soul Eater lowered his face in front of her and smiled before he whispered ever so softly, "No."

No? Was that really all he had to say? No? Her anger was boiling in the pit of her stomach. "Maka, do you remember that time I let you inside my head? To see the madness first hand?"

"Why wouldn't I? Probably the scariest thing I'd ever done."

"It's your turn, let me in."

Her expression turned from sour to almost hopeless at his words. He wanted her to 'let him in', exactly what did he mean by that?

"If I do that, you'll just take what's left and leave with it again." With that being said she climbed to her feet and composed herself, "I'm going to lay down." Maka made a note to not slam the door behind her as she made her way to her bed.

'If I do that, you'll just take what's left and leave with it again.' Soul sat on the couch in silence. He asked her to let him inside her head, what the hell was she talking about? He shook his head and put his feet on the coffee table. Honestly, had she been this bitter toward him the whole time? He just needed a break from all of it. He couldn't help it, he felt like he was causing her damaging emotional stress.

Soul sighed and looked at the clock. 12:01 am.

Maka had in shambles upstairs with absolutely nothing he could do about it. For some reason that fact absolutely shook him mad. To beat it all she was like this because of him. If he would've been able to foresee this, then he would have never left.

He stood and headed upstairs to his bedroom. The floor between the door and his bed had been littered with articles of clothing, for some reason he couldn't stand sleeping with clothes on. Even if he went to bed fully clothed he'd always wake up naked or half naked.

It couldn't have been that long before he heard the raindrops begin to beat off the roof. Thunder shook the sky and lightning struck across the window pane. Quite frankly, all of that rain gave him the undying urge to piss so he rose from his sheets and headed down the hallway. Not once did he think to stop and make sure he had some type of article of clothing on. Hell, if Maka had seen him naked it could possibly do her some good. He smirked at the thought and shook his head.

His large hand reached for the bathroom door but he stopped abruptly. Voices were coming from Maka's room, one belonged to her but the other...

He listened for a moment before he'd realized she was on the phone with someone.

"Yeah, it's just a struggle. Nothing to worry about really."

Who the hell was she talking to at this time of night? Soul bit the inside of his mouth trying to match the voice with a face.

"Really, Kidd I'm fine."

Kidd. His stomach turned and he gritted his teeth. Death the Kidd, huh? Well who would've fuckin' thought. Soul couldn't really explain the feeling that came over him. He pulled the bathroom door open and slammed it shut.

"Oh crap, I think I woke him up. Well anyway, I'm gonna get off here and rest, okay? Thanks Kidd."

Maka rose and stood outside of the bathroom door, "Soul…are you okay?" She really couldn't believe she had been asking. Like she cared...

A few seconds passed and the bathroom swung open to reveal a not so bright looking Soul Eater, "Yeah, just fine."

"Okay? Well sorry I asked."

"Death the Kidd, huh?"

"Excuse me?" She looked up at him.

"What's he got?"

"What…?" Maka shook her head and gave him a confused look.

"Your boyfriend?"

"What?! No-! Wait, why do you care!?"

"I DON'T!"

"Good!"

Soul stepped out of the bathroom but stopped when Maka fell backwards while stuttering. "S-soul?! Where are your clothes?!"

He paused for a moment before he smirked in realization of his state of nakedness, "What?!" He was amused at the way her face turned completely red. "Oh don't worry I'm sure KIDD is more equipped for your situation any damn way."

Soul walked-no, strutted by a shocked Maka who sat there until his bedroom door had shut.

"What just happened?" She mumbled to herself and crawled back into her bedroom. Why was Soul acting this way? Just because she talked to Kidd on the phone? Really? That was all it took to piss him off? And she didn't even want to think about his appearance. Hadn't the guy ever heard of wearing clothes? Like seriously. It wasn't like she'd never seen a penis before, but still! He was acting just like Black Star! How rude!


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter Five **

_Burdens too heavy._

* * *

The following morning Maka managed to sneak out of the house unseen. She had plans to meet with Tsubaki at the local café. It had been a complete relief to be out of the house and out from under Soul, especially now that things were awkward. She thought about the night before and blushed, he was such an idiot. That was a story she absolutely had to tell Tsubaki.

As Maka approached the Runninggo street corner she could see Tsubaki through the café window as she smiled and waved at her. The smile has been far too welcoming to Maka, for she had missed Tsubaki so much and hadn't even realized it. She took a seat in front of her and greeted her excitedly, Maka couldn't remember the last time she'd been this excited about something.

"So good to see you, Maka!"

"You to Tsubaki!" She smiled and ordered a french vanilla cappuccino. Tsubaki ordered a plain black cup of coffee.

"How are thing progressing?"

Maka had assumed she had been talking about her large plunge into madness, "Well... I really don't know."

"Well Lord Death and your dad certainly looked excited for the new experiment."

"You mean Soul and me living together?"

"Yeah, that's the whole reason we came back."

"Wait, what? You came back because you were finished with your mission."

"No, we actually didn't finish it. The night before all the action was supposed to happen Soul Eater answered a call from Lord Death. It was about you, Soul and Black Star had a disagreement but Soul ended up talking him into leaving. So here we are."

Maka looked at her slightly shocked, "Soul Eater Evans came back for me?"

"Yeah, well he probably won't tell you that but he couldn't stand the thought of you going through what he did."

"Did he say this?"

"I heard the exact words coming out of his mouth when he was speaking to Black Star."

The waitress returned with their drinks and excused herself. Why was Tsubaki telling her all of this? Was she telling the truth? Then again, why would she have any reason to lie to Maka?

"So!" Tsubaki clapped her hands together, "How have things been going."

Maka has been pulled back from her thoughts quickly, "Well I hate to admit it but his presence has made my episodes all but die off... in the past two or so weeks I've only had maybe two nightmares... that's a miracle, but... I don't know how to do it Tsubaki."

"Do what?"

"How did I ever get along with him well enough to resonate any kind of power?"

"You mean you guys aren't getting along?"

"Not really, all we do is fight…"

"But your eyes are green and your complexion is healthier." Maka giggled.

"so something must be working." Maka blushed profusely. Surely last night's event hadn't changed things that much.

"Soul Eater must be doing something right?" Tsubaki continued. Maka blushed at her words and the memories and she knew she'd have to spill to her.

"He what?!"

"Tsubaki keep your voice down..." Maka hushed her loud squeaky voice in an attempt to keep everyone in the café from over hearing. "You're kidding me, Maka, honestly... who would've thought seeing Soul Eater nude would bring back a fraction of your sanity."

"Tsubaki!" Maka hissed out. Tsubaki laughed and covered her mouth.

"I'm sure that had nothing to do with it…! Besides, he's still a jackass."

"Why would you say that, Maka?"

"Because he is..."

"Soul Eater is actually a pretty nice guy, Maka, he really cares about his friends."

"No he doesn't, when the going gets rough he gets going."

Tsubaki hesitated for a moment before nodding her head, "Oh I see... You're upset with him for leaving."

"I didn't say that..."

"Maka, don't drag this out. Why don't you just talk to him? I'm certain that's the key to your treatment. You need some kind of closure. I mean even if you guys don't get back together it's good to talk things out."

"Back…together? No... no Tsubaki, he and I were never together in that fashion."

"Then why are you holding his absence against him?"

"Because he was my friend... and he just left…"

"You love him."

Maka looked at her not so much shocked but still not knowing what to say. "I do not..."

"The moment you realize it things will become a lot easier for you, Maka I'm only saying this because I'm your friend. You have to get better. You know the risks of the situation. Even if you and Soul Eater reconnect there is no guarantee that it will be enough. Time is of the essence. Don't be stubborn Maka, please?"

Maka sighed and slumped her shoulders as she finished her cappuccino. "You sound like my dad."

"Well that's probably because he loves you and so do I."

Later that evening Maka walked into Steins office with a dreadful feeling. He called her there to meet with Soul and discuss their training strategy.

"Alright, looks like I have you both here, Well most of you anyway." Maka sharpened her glare.

"Did you bring me here to make jokes about my sanity?"

"No, no... have a seat." Maka sat down beside Soul and refused to look at him in fear of turning red and passing out from embarrassment.

"I assume your living situation is still in question." Stein crossed his arms and awaited their response.

Soul Eater said nothing and only clenched the arm of the chair and gritted his teeth. Maka could hear his jaw popping from where she had been seated and she couldn't help but look over at him. Oh man, he looked pissed. Really, what had there been to be mad about? She was talking on the phone with a friend...

"Perhaps I should light some candles and we should clear the air between you two?"

"N-no... I umm..." Maka tried to think of something to say but Tsubaki's words kept popping back up in her head.

"Don't drag it out."

Tsubaki had been right earlier, she may not have come out and said it like she wanted to but that had been because she loved Maka and wanted her to understand. She knew Maka was strong, even without Soul Eater, but that hadn't excused her actions toward him lately. It was time to act like an adult instead of a heart broken juvenile.

Maka took a deep breath and looked at Soul Eater, found steady eye contact with him, and apologized. "I'm sorry." She tried not to be taken aback by his reaction. A white eyebrow raised and his frown rippled to a straight line, "I'm sorry for the past two weeks. I've been taking everything out on you and...I know I've been difficult to live with. So, I'm sorry that really wasn't cool of me."

Soul Eater opened his mouth to answer her. He wanted to say something cunning about the night before but he just couldn't do it. "Maka..."

She smiled and nodded her head to him, "You don't have to say anything Soul. I know you suck at this stuff."

She had been right, he sucked at it sooo bad but he felt like he needed to say something. Soul cursed himself for his lack of vocabulary and nerve. Instead, he gave her his trademark smile and a wink while he tugged at a strand of her hair. It meant something only she understood and it had been the best he could do at the time.

"Alright! Now that this is partially cleared up. I need you two to match wavelengths!" Stein announced and clapped his hands together. "It won't be easy so you'll have to practice like the good ole days!"

Maka and Soul both sighed and rolled their eyes, "I see the two of you are off to a good start!" Stein pushed them out of the room and closed his door, "Don't come back until you've completed the task!"

Maka had the bright idea to use their old training grounds, so they drug their feet all the way there. It looked different, she hadn't been there since the last time they sparred, before he left. Vegetation had pretty much taken over everything and provided good cover for them.

"Well, where do we start?"

Soul shrugged and peeled his jacket off, then his shirt. "We'll just pick up where we left off last time we were here."

Maka blushed and turned away, "Is it possible for you to keep your clothes on? I think I've seen enough." She mumbled and Soul gave her a victorious grin. "Me being shirtless going to distract you?"

"You're full of yourself."

"I am?"

"I would just hate to cut up your pretty skin is all." Maka turned back to him with a newfound determination in her eyes. Soul smiled and had a feeling he was in for a real fight.

"That's my girl, give it to me..."

Maka was pretty sure Stein had meant to match their wavelengths, not pit them against each other. But either way it had given her a perfect opportunity to show him how much of an ass kicking he had coming. They only hesitated for a moment before throwing more blows into the fight. Soul seemed kind of surprised at how well she had been keeping up with him, he always thought a Meister went downhill without a weapon, but then again this was Maka Albarn.

"You haven't really changed at all Maka!" He yelled across the field.

"Really? Ya think so?"

"Still stubborn, quick on your feet, and weak."

Maka smiled knowing he was trying to get her riled up. "Yeah, well you still have a temper that controls your swing and you're still a loser."

The two shared a laugh, "How long have we been out here?"

The street lamps were beginning to flash on and crickets were chirping around them. "Don't know, but if you're scared of the dark I'll protect you." Maka smiled at him smugly. Soul slid his hands inside his pockets and smiled, "sure, sure nothing to worry about with you around, right?"

Maka began to smile and retaliate but something stopped her. She and Soul made eye contact before they looked up toward the sky.

"You feel that Soul Eater?"

"It's a witch."

"A strong one." Soul scanned the area with his sharp red eyes for the witch's location.

"I can't pin the location down Soul," Maka looked around nervously, "I think we should go."

The two were back to back, "I think it's too late for that, Maka. She's all around us..."

The air had turned humid, almost too humid. Neither of them spoke a word until their eyes landed on a figure standing on the farthest side of the training field. "Soul..."

The figure stepped toward them and Maka tensed. The power emitted from this single witch was both ominous and incredible. It was not someone you wanted to be caught out with when you had no wavelength correlation.

Another step.

"Soul...!"

He grabbed Maka's forearm hard, "Hope you're ready for this Maka." His voice had turned serious and his eyes were glued to the figure. "Match my wavelength."

"You make it sound like it's easy...!" Maka began to panic and Soul jerked her to shut her up.

"It's not easy if you sit and think about it! Just do it!"

Another step.

Maka knew there was no way she could do it without practice, she didn't know his wavelength that well now! He'd changed! It just wasn't possible to pull off. What had a witch this strong been doing near the academy? In the midst of her thinking, said figure stood before them with glowing yellow eyes.

"Maka! Do it or we die here! Don't choke dammit!" Soul Eater shot his wavelength through his hand and into her arm and her body jolted in response. The rest had been done on an impulse. Her reflexes reacted naturally to his wavelength and the next thing she knew she had been wielding a very heavy death scythe that she actually had no control over.

What the hell was she doing? How the hell was she doing it?

'It's not easy if you sit and think about it! Just do it!'

Maka's eyes narrowed at the witch and she pushed all of her inconsistent thoughts to the back of her head so she could focus on their wavelengths. She could now hear Soul Eater's voice in her head.

"Alright! Let's play Maka!"


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter Six**

_Your burden is mine._

* * *

Soul and Maka were forced to temporarily match wavelengths in order to fend off a witch. Why had there been a witch so close to the academy? They had no a clue but it looked all too fishy to Soul. This witch was powerful and how she managed to hide all of that power up until now was beyond him. And there had been no way Tsuabaki and Black Star could not have felt a presence this strong. With any luck they would arrive soon for back up. Until then Soul had to figure out a way to make himself lighter for Maka to swing. He could already feel her arms trying to collapse under his weight and if that happened they were really screwed.

"Maka, keep your attacks long range."

Long range attacks were their best options at the moment since there was no way she could handle his weight and the force of hand to hand combat on top of it, not only that but Maka had been acting on instinct rather than her own wit. He tried to focus on matching her movements every time she blocked an attack. She had been really struggling to hold him but she wasn't really showing it. He had just been thankful for her stubbornness for once in his life.

"Who are you?!" Maka yelled out, but received no answer.

"Doesn't matter! Under Lord Death I am granted the authority to destroy you and take your soul!" She pointed the large death scythe at the witch.

"That thing?" The voice appeared to be that of a woman who sounded sickly, "You're going to destroy me with a weapon you can barely wield?"

As if on cue, Maka began to really feel the effects of swinging Soul around so carelessly. Her arms began to shake and she struggled to stand with him. "Don't let her get in your head Maka, it's easy if you don't think about it." Maka would like to know where he received his logic from, but actually when she thought about how heavy he had been it really started to hurt her body. Her knees started to buckle under his weight...

"Maka!"

She gasped and tightened her grip around Soul before forcing herself to block the next attack. Said attack had an obvious overbearing amount of force behind it, but Maka, being as suborn as she was, planted her feet into the earth and refused to give or bend. If this witch really wanted a fight, then Maka Albarn was the right person to challenge.

It had almost been like a graceful dance between the two; Maka ducked to avoid a burst of light she shot from her hand and the witch dodged Soul's sharp blade coming at her from below.

Soul didn't really know how long Maka could keep up, he'd actually expected her to have already given in. It wasn't news to him that he was undesirably heavy, even Black Star had issues holding him for long periods of time. But what amazed him was how much of a bitch Maka was making Black Star out to be at the moment.

Maka felt her muscles tighten and sting until they were numb. She forced her body to comply to her demands despite how badly the pain burned through her. If she was to give up there was no telling what would happen after the witch had finished with her and Soul.

Purple specs began to float into Maka's vision and she felt her blood pressure rising. Black cracks grained her vision so that not only did she feel nothing but she was losing the rest of her consciousness. The last thing she heard was Soul's worried voice…

* * *

"So she flaked out on you, huh?"

"Wasn't like she wanted to..."

"You're really gonna defend her? She's been nothing but rude to you ever since you came here. And it was for her! I wouldn't give her the time of day."

"Black Star, you wouldn't give anyone the time of day. You don't even give it to Tsubaki but lucky for you she's caring and understanding enough to give you her whole life with nothing in return."

Black star crossed his arms and arched his brow, "This isn't about me and Tsubaki though."

"Maybe it should be. Maybe that's what's really bothering you here."

"Just who the hell do you think you are?!" Black Star stepped forward with furrowed brows, "No one talks to me like that so don't even Soul Eater!"

Soul didn't seem moved by his advancement and only shrugged his shoulders, "Listen, if you weren't so full of yourself maybe you would win more fights than you lose."

"I always win my fights! I am BLACK STAR."

"You're an idiot."

The two were interrupted by a small nurse who cleared her throat, "I'm going to have to ask you two to please keep it down, Mr. Evans, Miss Albarn is still resting and is not ready to wake."

"Sorry, we will."

"Yeah, whatever." Black Star rolled his eyes and leaned back against the wall.

"You can go on, I'm sure Tsubaki is worried enough."

The blue haired assassin nodded his farewell and headed out the door, "Give Maka my best when she wakes up. Though she probably doesn't deserve it, it might make her feel better."

"Sure." A large hand waved Black Star off and came to rest on the arm of the chair he was seated in. There had been nothing to do but sit and wait for Maka to come to. Also a perfect time to think about what he had done wrong in the previous fight, he had a laundry list of things.

First off, he should have run OR at least tried to run. The only reason he didn't was because he knew they wouldn't get very far and would most likely be caught off guard doing so. Another reason was because of his pride which probably wasn't something he had last time he and Maka resonated.

Secondly, He should NOT have forced her to resonate. That was more dangerous than making a run for it and could've potential worsened her condition.

Soul wasn't one to make assumptions off of first glance but Maka was looking extremely pale in her hospital bed, no telling what waited beneath her eyelids.

Green or red?

He sighed and shifted in the hard wooden chair uncomfortably.

Thirdly, he should have stopped her when she lost consciousness. Instead he froze up and stumbled like the kid he used to be. Though he couldn't help but wonder if Maka shared the same reaction as he did, all those years ago.

His thoughts were interrupted by a light voice. He immediately shot up and went to the side of the bed, "Maka?" Her eyes were half lidded and dull. "Maka are you there?" Soul waved a hand in front of her face and took note of her dull gray eyes. What the hell did that mean?

* * *

"How long was I out?"

"About... half a day..."

"Wow really? Pathetic..."

"Just shut up...I'll call the nurse." Soul pushed the call button. "You're a handful Maka."

She just smiled and closed her eyes.

"So, tell me what happened again?"

"You blacked out, I couldn't read your movements they were at random, I tried to reason with you but got no answer, we killed the witch, you passed out, I ate the witch's soul, and then I brought you here." Soul said nonchalantly in an attempt to sum everything up.

"I don't remember half of that..."

"Did you miss the 'you blacked out' part? I mean it's not likely that you'll ever remember what you did."

"No, but that bothers me..."

"What? The control freak losing control? Poor Maka..."

"Shut up Soul!" Her smile betrayed her harsh voice and she gave him a light shove, "I'll kick you off my hospital bed."

"Well maybe I'll just go then...!"

"Maybe you will!" She launched her foot at him in an attempt to make good on her word, but Soul caught it with ease. He wrapped his long fingers around her foot and flicked his thumb on its soul sending her climbing half way up the wall in laughter. "Stop! I hate being tickled!"

He pulled his hand back with a victorious smirk, "I hate being kicked."

Stein knocked on the open door before he waltzed in. "Maka! Glad to see you're among the living once again! You gave us all a scare."

"Yeah..." She hesitated, "Sorry."

"Let's have a look at your eyes." Maka felt her face heat up when Soul grabbed her face and peeled her eyes open wide, "They're gray." He told Stein, "What does that mean?"

"Well... I couldn't tell you right off the bat..."

Maka pulled away from Soul and gave him a look. "Don't do that."

Stein sat in the wooden chair across from her bed, "Tell me how you feel and what you remember."

"I feel sore... umm... a little embarrassed... not really tired, just annoyed and I really don't remember anything after the point of unconsciousness."

"Annoyed?"

Maka paused and looked to a random corner in the room. "Yeah ...you guys are aggravating..." She played off the insult with pride in her voice. She had really been annoyed with herself. She was feeling kind of insecure about the fact that everything about her could be read by just the color of her eyes.

"Glad to see you're feeling okay..." Stein smiled and lit a cigarette.

"I don't think you're allowed to smoke in a hospital." A new voice entered the room. Souls eyes met and clashed with Kidd's yellow ones. Stein blew smoke from his nose and ignored him.

"I came as soon as I heard, Maka..." He stepped in and walked toward her bedside, "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine." Maka smiled and Soul unknowingly rolled his eyes and slumped his posture. Stein arched an eyebrow at his discrete display of jealousy.

"Is there anything I can get you?"

"No reall-"

"I got it…! I've got everything here Kidd. You don't need to worry Maka is already taken care of." Soul piped in and met his gaze with a sharp glare. Maka gave Soul a confused look and shook her head.

* * *

After Soul settled Maka back into the house he took off to Stein's office where he had been waiting with cigarette in hand.

"Alright, now tell me the rest and don't leave out a detail. Describe the feeling and the conversation that was exchanged."

"Well.. I knew something was wrong when Maka just blacked out so I peeked into her mind to try and bring her back. That's when I felt the pull; somewhat of a vacuum effect. I was being pulled into her mind but there was nothing there but black.. abyss?"

"I would assume that is that madness taking a hold on her.. it seems to be spreading bad but this is the first time she's ever blacked out while in combat."

"It could have been because I forced her to resonate, that could've increased the pace right?"

"I don't know... well anyway continue."

"Like I said... I couldn't see anything. I just got pulled in and for the longest time It felt like I was lying on my back in a dark room... then there was a girl."

"The one with white hair?"

"right, she looked just like Maka... but sick... I guess."

"Did you tell Maka?"

"No."

"Good."


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter Seven**

_Meeting your maker._

* * *

Maka tried not to lay around the house and she tried to look as non-lazy as she possibly could but the throbbing pain in her head prevented her from properly doing so. Now that she knew she could resonate with Soul Eater she wanted to practice, practice, practice, and perfect it! It was almost like hope had filled her lungs and expanded her heart to the point where she thought she might burst from happiness. It had been so long since she'd resonated with anyone and the after effects of her and Soul's resonation proved to be absolutely salubrious.

With new found liveliness the blonde jumped to her feet and made haste with cleaning herself off and ridding the atmosphere of her hospital garb. Once in the shower she sat in the floor and allowed the hot water to purge her of the foul odor left to emanate from her skin cells. It had been nice to be alone like this when she was in her better moods. Any other day she would've been constantly zoning out and trying to find her way back from the hell encased inside her mind.

Maka's shoulders slumped ever so slightly as she recollected the memories she had of her and Soul. Back when she had nearly lost him to the thing called madness. His was much more complicated though, and she was pretty sure he still had short comings due to the infectious monstrosity labeled 'Black Blood'. Crona came to her mind for an instant and a single tear fell from her face. He vanished a mere six months after Soul left with Black Star and no one had seen or heard from him since.

Her thoughts were interrupted by the slamming of the front door. Which indicated that Soul had made it home. Maka stepped out of the shower and slipped into her green fuzzy sleepwear.

Maka trotted down the stair, her hair still wet, to ecstatically greet the newly arriving Soul Eater. "Soul!" She stopped at the bottom of the stairwell and glanced around. There had been no Soul...

"Soul, I heard you come in! What did Stein want?"

She made her way to the kitchen and paused suspiciously. The house had been quiet, way too quiet for a clumsy Soul Eater to have previously trampled through. If it wasn't the door... then what had made that noise?

Carefully, Maka walked around the kitchen's bar and made sure to be extra quiet as if she was trying to hear foreign footsteps. She stopped and took another look around the room until her eyes landed on the glass oven door. She could see her reflection perfectly.

Beautiful green vibrant eyes were staring back at her. She'd never felt so happy in her life to see that much color in one reflection.

A smile graced her face and she took note of how her skin was absolutely glowing with a sun kissed tan and a few freckles.

Maka wasn't at all conceited but she enjoyed a good view like anyone else. She inwardly giggled at her own antics and her almost neon green eyes rested on a setvoff red ones reflecting off the oven also. It had been the mere shock of the moment that caused her reaction to be so delayed.

She glanced back at her own green ones then looked again at the separate pair of eyes that seemed to be standing behind the bar.

Those eyes didn't belong to Soul Eater.

Tsubaki swayed her hips as she made her way down the street to Soul and Maka's place. She wanted to see Maka and check on her properly. Unfortunately, Black Star had tagged along with his big knock down drag out attitude reigning on her glorious parade.

"Now we are going to be optimistic and only say nice things to Maka, okay Black Star? No matter what you think we are still her friend and she needs us more than ever right now."

"Sure thing! Glad I can help."

Tsubaki smiled, "I'm very proud of you Black Star. It's no often I see you putting your friends needs before-"

"I mean this face could make anyone feel better, right? She should be thanking me for blessing her with my appearance today." He smiled wolfishly.

Tsubaki sighed and mumbled, "Never mind..."

The two reached the large home and Tsubaki gingerly rang the doorbell. She smiled to Black Star as they awaited the footsteps approaching the door. "Hello?"

A slightly high pitched voice met their ears which caused Tsubaki's eyebrows to furrow together. "Maka? A...are you...okay?" She was taken aback by the sight before her and wasn't sure exactly what to say.

"Maka? I'm sorry, I think you're mistaken. You have the wrong house."

A slightly paler Maka with long white locks of hair and piercing red eyes stood in the doorway. "B-but-"

Black Star put a hand on Tsubaki's shoulder, "She's right, we have the wrong house. Sorry to bother you, ma'am." He took his weapon's hand and walked toward Lord Death's office.

"B-black Star what just?"

"Don't worry that wasn't Maka. But we need to get to Soul and Lord Death as soon as possible."

"How do you know that wasn't her? Maybe the madness finally-"

"Trust me."

Maka had just pulled what may have been the riskiest move in her entire career so far. She wasn't exactly sure who rang the doorbell but she knew she had to take an opportunity when it was presented.

Carefully, and discretely she recognized the blue haired figure sanding outside the door and she held her hand up just high enough to catch his attention. With the techniques she'd acquired from reading an assassins journal a few years back she used a secret sign language to describe her current situation in hopes that Black Star wasn't the complete moron everyone perceived him to be.

His eyes connected with her green ones as the door closed and she knew he'd understood.

Now, she had been let with a female who possessed odd white hair and red eyes. She didn't talk much but the way she carried herself had been unsettling enough. Her physique was long and stiff, nearly no curves at all. She didn't look like that, did she?

Her eyes bore into Maka's green ones and the room was filled with complete silence. Maka felt she couldn't remove her own gaze from the girl in front of her in fear of what would come next.

So as they stood staring at one another Maka realized the unspoken truth. She was finally meeting her monster and greatest enemy; herself.


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter Eight **

_My baby._

* * *

Maka had stood in the kitchen and stared at the girl in front of her. It was amazing how much she had resembled Soul Eater. Except he actually had somewhat of a tan. On one hand she looked absolutely insidious, but on the other she seemed like she had been begging for help in some way. Maka couldn't quite find the feature that screamed she had been through pain.

"You know why I'm here?" Her voice was hoarse and unused. And it was almost like she never blinked.

"No, I don't even know who you are."

"I'm you."

"You can't be me, I'm standing here."

"So am I."

"No, no that's not what I meant-"

"Are you afraid of me?"

"No. No I'm not but you said you were the same person as me, I don't believe you-"

"I think you're afraid of me."

"I am not afraid of you."

"Think about it." Her red eyes averted to the bar and she slid a pale finger across the shiny countertop. "You're here without a weapon, defenseless. In front of the unknown."

"I am NOT defenseless."

"Oh but you are. You're whiny, bitchy, defenseless and you lack the strength to back up your own challenges."

Maka stared at her for a moment. "You don't know me."

"I AM you."

"If you were me then you'd know what you're saying is the biggest load of shit ever."

"You're delusional, if you could just wake up Maka Albarn and see what you really are. What WE really are. I'm the truth, you're what you want to be."

"You're confusing."

Her red eyes snapped up to her and she smiled. "I am you, Maka. I am Maka. I'm everything you are that makes you undesirably human. I'm all of your pent up emotions, I'm your turned cheek, I'm your source of anger, aggression, regret, and insecurities." Maka furrowed her brows, "Haven't you noticed how good you've felt these past few days? How vibrant you felt with your famous green eyes? You thought it was because of your lovers return? How sweet, but how wrong you were."

"I don't follow..."

"I allowed you to feel that way, because I left. Soul Eater Evans' return was the perfect opportunity for me to plan my escape. That way you thought it was him that made you feel all happy." She laughed and rolled her eyes. "You really don't believe that I am you? You're a stupid girl. You've been sickly mad for a long time, the only thing that's kept you safe from me is that silly Stein and his treatments. It was a pain to work around but I had already taken care of one obstacle, why not wait out Stein?"

"Wait- one obstacle?"

"Oh yes! Your little friend… what was the name...pink hair... always gave uplifting speeches to you...stuttered a lot..."

Maka's eyes hardened, "What did you do to Crona?!"

"Crona! That's the name! No need to worry, we set him away."

"We? Now there is a 'we'? I thought you were me!?"

Meanwhile, with Stein...

"What are we waiting for?!" Soul had almost ripped apart the entire hall with Stein in tow.

"Soul we can't just barge in, from what Black Star and Tsubaki described I believe I know what we're dealing with."

Soul hesitated before he'd stopped and gave him his full attention. "Well?"

"I need Spirit to accompany us, I need a weapon I'm most compatible with, you cannot go in alone."

"Where the hell is he?!"

Black Star looked at Tsubaki, "We saw him heading toward Maka's earlier."

"We'll meet him there and you can tell us what we're up against on the way, Stein."

Spirit had practically been frolicking to the home that Maka shared with Soul. He was so excited to see and check on his baby girl he could hardly contain himself. Once he'd arrived he only knocked twice before letting himself in.

"Maaakkaaa! Darling, daddy brought you some flowers!" Spirit pranced into the kitchen where he saw Maka standing, "You look a lot better! I'm glad I was so worried!"

Maka forced a smile and took the flowers, "Thanks, dad."

"Ohhh my baby!" Spirit hugged her and kissed her forehead before releasing her and looking around, "What were you doing? It's so quiet in here... why don't we watch some tv?"

"I don't think that's really the best idea, daddy..."

Spirit arched a brow. She had referred to him as her father two times in a row without even twitching or seizing. "You sure you're alright?"

"Yeah, just...fighting with myself...dad." She smiled and nodded, "You know how badly I talk to myself at times..."

Spirit paused for a moment, "Let me get you a vase to put those flowers in, surely Soul has one or two laying around here..."

"I'll probably have to pick one up..."

Spirit stepped back and leaned against the bar with a more serious look on his face. His teeth played with his bottom lip for at least two minutes before he spoke again. "You can come out now."

Maka tensed.

"I can smell you from over here."

"What are you talking about dad?"

"Maka, are you hiding a witch?"

"W-witch?"

"I said come out!"

He stood straight and looked around the room until a white haired girl with red eyes entered his vision.

"A death scythe, huh? Just my luck."

Spirit looked unamused, "Can't believe I didn't smell your stink when I walked in, you must be good at this..."

"Oh please, I've become quite the local here."

"She's a witch? but she said she was me! She basically said she was the reason I was mad." Maka looked up at Spirit.

"It's possible, it would make sense anyway. You could be possessed by a witch and drove to madness but that's not something that happens very often. She's had to have been targeting you for some reason. It's okay, she'll tell me before I cut her tongue out and devour her soul."

"Save your speech death scythe, I don't plan to fight you now."

"No offense but I'm not exactly on your schedule."

Maka was ready. If her father had needed to resonate with her and kill this bitch she was full on ready to go toe to toe with her. She'd been messing with her emotions, fucking up her sleep, driving her insane at an agonizingly slow pace and her ticket was about to be punched. Her green eyes narrowed and she clenched her fists. "I don't care what you want or why you targeted me. The fact is you are not me and I'm going to kill you."

Spirit, for a moment, thought he'd heard his ex wife talking and glanced toward Maka. It wasn't quite his ex wife but her presence had been evident in Maka's determined eyes.

"Since my play time is up i'll be seeing a lot more of you two later I suppose." The white haired girl literally vanished in front of them.

Not a moment later Soul and Black Star barged through the door. Spirit looked surprised and smiled. "You missed it! My baby stared down a nasty witch!"

Maka slumped her shoulders and sighed, "Don't call me that!"


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter Nine**

_A change in the tide._

* * *

"A witch? I wish I would've known that a long time ago..."

The group congregated in Soul's living room as Stein continued. "From what Spirit has said, I would wager that this is not your typical witch we're dealing with. I was under the impression that Maka was being taken by madness, she had all of the symptoms...but this witch snuck right underneath me and fooled me."

Spirit shifted his weight onto his other foot, "And I doubt she was in her original form so her power was slightly suppressed, in order to do that she'd have to have some abnormal object of power or another witch."

"Abnormal object?" Maka interrupted, "Like, something that emanates magic?"

Stein nodded and lit a cigarette. "The kicker is; it could be in the form of anything. You wouldn't know it unless you knew what to look for...Did she have any odd objects with her?"

"No, nothing."

Back Star scratched the back of his head, "Well what's the possibility of there being another witch?"

"If there were another witch she could be anywhere, but I doubt she'd be local. It takes a lot of power to suppress someone's image and magic the way hers had been. I didn't even sense it on Maka. The other witch wouldn't be able to hide her own form while lending that much magic out to her friend."

Stein thought for a moment, "Even with all of those facts to consider I still can't fathom why they, or she, would want to possess Maka..."

Maka shook her head and sighed, "well at least she's out of me..."

Spirit looked to Stein and they both nodded in agreement.

"Maka, we want you and Soul to participate in some rituals to cleanse and prevent future possessions. No offense Maka but I would rather you be possessed than Soul Eater. We may be able to sedate you if you were to lose control but he is another story." Stein puffed on his cigarette.

"I think Tsubaki and Black Star should participate too." Spirit added, "Just to be safe. We don't know what we're really dealing with here."

The group had agreed and split up. Spirit tried to take Maka out to eat but she declined and said she'd rather rest on the couch.

"So how do we do this ritual thing?" Soul asked as he turned the tv off.

"I have some books on it..."

"Think you should get them out?"

Maka nodded but kept her gaze low. She'd barely been able to force herself to look him in the eyes since the 'incident'. Never in her life had she ever thought she would see so much of Soul Eater in one place and time. I mean who does that? Just walk around naked with others in the house?! Did he do that around Black Star and Tsubaki?!

"Maka...?"

"Huh?"

"Books...ritual...go get them." He stared at her with wide red eyes.

"Right! Sorry!"

Maka ran upstairs barefoot and her blonde hair bounced behind her leaving Soul on the couch confused. One minute they were talking about books and the next minute she had been clamming up and blushing. That wasn't like Maka at all...

"So after we do the ritual we check in with Stein?"

"He said to stop by tomorrow. It's getting late."

Maka sat on the couch next to him and opened some of the books. "Okay we need to turn off all unnatural lighting first." Soul took it upon himself to prance to the kitchen and flick the lights off. "Bring a liter, Soul!"

Maka pulled two handfuls of long stem candles from the bottom of her book box. "That many candles? You just pack those around?"

"No, I meditate at night and lite them...don't judge me."

Soul helped her set the table with three candles, as directed by the book, and lit each one of them.

"Hope this works." Maka returned all of the spare candles back to the box with the other books.

"Now what?"

Maka directed him to sit facing her on the floor and crossed her legs. "The books says we have to have a moment of meditation to clear our minds and breathe in the aroma the candles are giving off."

"They're scented?" He sniffed in the direction of the candles.

"Yes, Soul, they're scented... Lavender."

He made a distasteful face and shook his head, "Anyway, focus Soul. After we complete this part we have to match wave lengths and create a barrier."

"Wait, I thought this was an individual person's task, not a two player...?"

"Two player makes a stronger barrier against witches. So that's what we're going with."

"Sure, okay." He nodded, "And after we match wavelengths?"

"It doesn't specify what happens..."

The silence between then was almost agonizing. It was very difficult for Maka to concentrate for some reason. Even though she did her usual technique of taking deep breaths and numbing her own body to worldly sensations, she couldn't shake the feeling of being watched…

Once her curiosity had gotten to her, she opened her eyes slowly in an attempt to be sneaky about it. The room had been empty besides Soul Eater's lean form before her. He was in perfect meditation stance with his hands clamped together in his lap.

Maka studied his physique and all it had to give to her almost needy eyes until her gaze fell upon his. It was him that had been watching her… had he even closed his eyes? She began to say something but stopped once she noticed the haziness of his pupils. Was he in a trance or something?

She leaned closer to him and turned her head slightly to try and obtain a better view of his eyes. They moved and he gasped almost jumping. He wasn't in a trance; he was watching her. His red orbs followed her steadily as she swayed ever so slightly. Why was he looking at her like that? And why was he leaning forward?

Maybe she was the one in a trance.

Her mindless wondering had halted and she was drilled back to reality when a pair of soft yet scarred lips met with hers. His tongue had trailed across her bottom lip just begging her. She hesitated and was in a shocked state before finally giving in.

Small fingertips trailed up his arms and tightened around his biceps. For a moment she felt as if she'd completely lost her mind. The taste of his tongue on the inside of her bottom lip shot chills through every nerve ending she possessed and caused every hair on the back of her neck to stand up.

Her lips parted for a moment of weakness and gave Soul the perfect opportunity to deepen the kiss. His large hands cupped her faced and had prevented her from retreating from his grasp. His large but gentle thumb stroked the line of her small jaw. His mouth fit hers almost too perfectly and the fact that she hadn't beat the shit out of him yet was a good sign.

Soul felt himself give when her smaller form tried to push against his own larger one. Her hands had run up and down his arms as she played with his shoulders. Keeping his hands from exploring every inch of her he could possibly reach had been the hardest thing he'd ever been challenged with.

Shouldn't they be doing a ritual? Eh, that could wait.

In that moment he finally had Maka seeing eye to eye with him and he wasn't eager to give it up. Her mouth was pressed tightly against his and their lips were in perfect sync with one another. He could feel her long lashes touch his own and he knew her eyes were closed so she could feel just as much of the moment as he did.

Maka had been the one who broke the kiss. She had to breathe but only for a second before she was latched back onto him again. This time it was a more heated kiss unlike the first. Soul made her feel surrounded with his arms tightly around her waist. Clumsy hands ran through his hair as he used his weight to knock her on her back without even once breaking the kiss.

Her mind was so flustered she couldn't comprehend what was actually going on. Her heart beat fluttered at an extreme rate as his hands found their way to the hem of her top. She wasn't ready. She wasn't ready...

A loud thump interrupted them as a still lit candle rolled by Maka's head. Soul quickly grabbed the said candle and placed it back upright.

"Umm.. sorry about that." He rubbed that back of his neck.

"Yeah .. umm me too.."

The two sat in silence for a moment before Soul Eater blew frustrated air from his mouth, "Do you wanna..?"

Maka arched a brow at him.

"You wanna just pick this up later and… got to bed?"

Bed? Was he that tired? Or was it just too awkward between them now?

"If that's what you want."

He blew out the candles and held out his hand.

Shit.

That had been what he meant.

Maka stared at his hand then at him. He didn't want to turn in for the night, he actually wanted to go to bed... with her.

"S-soul I..uh.."

He smirked and rolled his eyes, "Quit babbling and come on' it aint that serious. Just lay down with me."

Maka took his hand and allowed him to lead her to his room. It was the only room in the house she hadn't been in before and it was the largest. The theme was red, black, and green. She sat on his bed and scooted back to the headboard. Soul pulled half of his clothes off before he crawled beside her and collapsed. He rolled on his back and took her hand. Maka blushed and looked away as he knitted their fingers together.

"It's not like we're twelve again ya know?"

Maka looked down at him, "Yeah I know."

"You don't have to put up a front for me."

"I'm not."

"Yes you are."

"You know so much.."

"About you, yeah. I spent my childhood with you, I know you Maka Albarn."

Maka blushed and shook her head. The room had grown silent once more until Soul Eater decided to continue. "Remember when you used to be afraid of lightning? You used to come to my room and I'd hold you all night."

"Shut up."

"You still afraid of lightning?"

Maka hesitated before answering, "Yeah."

"You know you can-"

"Come to your room, yeah I get it, but don't you sleep naked or something? No thanks."

Soul chuckled and squeezed her hand lightly. "I'm not even gonna go there."

Maka's face had turned the color of Soul's bedroom walls; blood red. He was right, things were different now. They were no longer kids, and there seemed to be sexual tension hanging in the air with their once innocent old habits. Like him holding her through a lightning storm. 'Holding' her.

Or how she used to sit up with him all night when he'd had his night terrors. Back then they would just play video games to pass the time but now.. ?

"You're thinkin' too much, thought you was gonna lay down with me?"

"I don't know about all of that..."

Soul gave her a look that made her laugh. Was she over estimating him? Had he really never changed? or was he some new experienced older Soul Eater that knew his way with women?

Was she making a mistake by laying with him or was she just over thinking things? She couldn't read him anymore.

She laid beside him expecting him to try the worst, just like any man. She closed her eyes and waited to feel his mischievous, up to no good hands fondling her body like a starved animal but instead his light snoring met her ears.

Really.

Really?

Really?!

Oh, was she not good enough for him to fondle?! She glared at him for as long as she could muster before giving in to how angelic he looked. Maybe he really was tired...

Maybe it was her that had changed, not him.


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter Ten**

_I can't help falling in love with you._

* * *

Maka left early to meet Tsubaki at a small cafe for the second time that week. She wanted to discuss the effects of their previously performed ritual. Soul and Maka had finally successfully completed the ritual only a few days after they... were interrupted. The tension around the entire witch situation made Maka simply uneasy, then Soul had to go and kiss her. Not that she had been complaining or anything...

Tsubaki was sitting at the booth closest to the bay window of the cafe. Her long beautiful hair was braided behind her loosely as she sipped on a cup of caramel latte. She greeted Maka with a smile as she sat down in front of her.

"You are looking better and better by the day!"

"I know; I haven't gotten to thank everyone for all of their help the other day. This whole situation is just confusing..."

"Yeah... no kidding there. Black Star and I have been searching high and low for clues as to where this witch and her accomplice may be hiding... well if she has an accomplice that is..."

"Yeah, I can't think of anything it could possibly be either..."

"Want to go to the library after this? Maybe do some extensive research?" Maka shook her head in agreement and had decided it best for them to put their theories together.

"Where is Soul today?"

"He's working out... training..."

"And you didn't go to watch?"

"Wha- Tsubaki! Hush..."

"What? I'm guilty of peeking in on Black Star every now and again...he's grown up so much."

"I...don't want to hear it." Maka waved the thought off and ordered.

"I'm pretty sure I heard Black Star say he was going to join Soul Eater and walk to the beach today..."

"The beach?"

"We should go!"

"What? why?"

"We need a vacation and it's not that far away, besides it won't be all that crowded today either."

"I don't own a bikini."

"We can fix that!" Tsubaki clapped her hands together excitedly. "It's decided, we are going!"

"But what about research?"

"Day off, Maka! Understand what that means?"

"Well... I guess it couldn't hurt..."

Both girls swallowed their lattes and headed off to the mall leaving trails of dust behind them.

As they came upon a store segregated inside the mall Maka began to nervously twitch. Tsubaki swore it was a beach store and that would be where they would find what they were looking for in her size but it just didn't look or smell like a moderately safe atmosphere. There were dim lights lighting the entire store with music so loud you couldn't hear yourself cough. The air stank of expensive smelling perfume and the walls were lined with clothes and summer wear.

"Over here!" Tsubaki grabbed her hand and screamed over the music. "Here, go in there and try this on!" She handed her a maroon bikini she had picked out and shoved her inside a small room being guarded by a tall red headed man. It may have been a good idea for women to have a body guard in such shady places but he didn't look none to friendly himself and his fire red hair stuck out to her in an odd way.

The bikini looked to have been expertly chosen once she slid her slim figure into it. Maka twirled slightly in the mirror and examined the way it accentuated her new found curves, a sign of womanhood if you will. The top had shredded maroon tassels dangling carelessly from its fabric and the bottom had been thin, but not too thin. To her surprise, Maroon looked absolutely amazing on her skin tone.

She changed back and exited the room quietly. Tsubaki had been waiting with a few other accessories she had picked out along with a beach towel and they made their way to the checkout counter. The entire time Maka could feel someone's eyes on the back of her head. She stopped at the counter with Tsubaki and as they had begun checking you she casually turned to her left and spotted just what she suspected. The red headed man from before was leaned against the changing room door and had been glaring holes in the back of her head. Once he'd seen her turn he averted his unsettling gaze to the opposite side of the room. Maka grabbed the purchased merchandise and they made a swift exit. She didn't want to look into his eyes again, they resembled Soul Eaters far too much.

Brushing it off as an odd encounter, Maka didn't mention it to Tsubaki. The girls went to Tsubaki's place and changed before they made the mile long walk to the beach at 11 am. Once they arrived Tsubaki immediately spotted Black Star's set of over achieved abs bobbing in the water and mumbled, "See, he doesn't look too bad now does he?" Maka shook her head in disapproval and laid their towels down in a shady spot.

"WOW! IS THAT MAKA IN A BIKINI?!" Black Star yelled from the ocean obnoxiously, "WAIT 'TIL SOUL GETS A LOAD OF THIS! HE'LL NOT BELIEVE IT!"

"Can you yell it any louder, IDIOT?!" Maka shot back at him. She had then sat down on her blanket and rubbed lotion on her arms and legs.

"Oh look! It's Kidd!" Black Star trotted out of the water and toward the seated Maka.

"Here, need help?" Maka looked up at the tall dark headed man. "I'll rub it on your back..."

"Oh you don't...have to do that Kidd..." Maka stuttered out nervously.

"Nonsense, allow me." He gracefully squirted his hands full of tanning lotion and grabbed one of Maka's legs gently, "Oh I already got my legs..."

"You missed a spot..."

"O- I did?"

His large soft hands massaged the lotion into her legs and thighs sensually as they worked their way up to her stomach where he paid extra care. His hands rolled over her hips and gripped slightly and caused her to gasp and look into his deep eyes. "You're so tense, Maka... anything I can do for you?"

She was at a loss for words as he ran his hands over her stomach and up her sides. "Feel good?"

A rough and raspy throat clearing interrupted Kidd's assault on her slim petite and shocked form. A shadow had towered over them for some ways. "Pretty sure I can handle it from here, Kidd."

Kidd didn't have to look up to know who he was speaking too. "No need Soul Eater."

"Kidd, move."

"No I will not Soul Eater. I was assisting her."

"Then let me assist you..."

"Guys!" Maka sat up with her arms between them, "Just stop, I can put lotion on myself, thank you Kidd... But I didn't ask for your help." Maka stood and grabbed her lotion bottle and walked to the small bathroom beneath the pier.

"What the hell has gotten into those two?" She mumbled and proceeded to rub herself down getting everywhere but her back before running back out to Tsubaki and Black Star.

That evening she and Soul drug into the house almost dead tired. Maka could see her darker complexion but yet she could feel the redness on her burned back. Heat had seeped through her skin and she leaned against a cold wall for some relief while she waited on Soul to exit the bathroom. He seemed to be in a sour mood, she didn't really know why. At least he wasn't acting weird since the whole kiss thing.

Her eyes shot open and she stomped her foot. "Damn!" She couldn't believe she'd forgotten all about the witch and possession research. How were they ever going to solve this and protect themselves if they kept goofing off like this?! She chastised herself mentally and grumbled staring at her feet with distaste. She was such an idiot.

"What are you mad about?" Her eyes shot up to Soul Eater who was leaning against the now open bathroom door, large arms crossed at his chest. He still had the after workout swell going on in his biceps and shoulders as she could tell. He must have really hit the bench hard that morning.

"Nothing, just that we keep wasting time having fun and we are getting nowhere in this witch hunt."

His arms fell to his sides and he rolled his eyes, "You're worried about that? Told you I would take care of it."

"Yes but I am helping, Soul."

"Yeah... yeah I guess you are."

There was a light pause between them. "My back is so burned..."

"Should've let me rub lotion on your back earlier…"

"You were acting like a little kid with Kidd, remember?"

"I was not; He just needs to learn his place is all..."

"Oh is that right? And where might that be?"

"Not on you." A jealous gleam of light flashed through his eyes and Maka shook her head, "You're not really jealous are you, Soul? That's…"

"Not cool? Yeah, I know." He chuckled and moved out of the doorway. "Go ahead and shower... after that I'll put some Aloe on your back...okay?"

"Yeah... Thanks..."

Maka stepped into the bathroom and closed the door with a sigh. She couldn't wait to get some soothing water going and just relax for the day. She ran a hand through her hair and stood in front of the mirror smiling at herself. Her eyes were much brighter now and her complexion was godly golden. She looked like a very healthy individual and this had made her excited to hunt down the witch causing all of this and protect Soul Eater while she was at it.

The longer she stared at herself the more her smile faded and her face twisted. Maybe it was a hallucination or maybe…

She screamed and stumbled back into the wall. Not again, it was back. Red eyes were staring back at her through the eye sockets of her reflection. She was screaming so loud and high pitched she couldn't hear herself. The bathroom door swung open and one of the hinges broke. She could see Soul's mouth moving but she couldn't hear all of the words. He was coming toward her with his arms out and then around her, he pulled her to him tightly, then out of the bathroom and it was as if all the sound in the house came back to her at once.

"Maka... Maka, You're alright, calm down!"

"M-my eyes, Soul! My eyes they were-"

"I know; I know I saw them..."

He sunk to the floor with her in his arms, against a closet door. "But they're fine now... I promise they're green..."

"W... what happened?"

"I think we just found our object..."

"The...mirror?" She was still shaking and in shock. "Nah, look it's still glowing. I dunno how we didn't notice it before." Maka stared into the bathroom at the mirror over the sink.

"That...?"" Maka pointed to a small red ruby casually placed in the light fixture attached to the mirror. It seemed to fit in with the red and black theme so well that neither of them noticed it.

"Call dad, and Stein."

"Go ahead." Maka made her way down stairs and dialed her father's phone number and alerted him of the events that had just taken place. It didn't take long for the pair to arrive and for stein to skillfully extract the item.

"That's definitely it..." Spirit slipped his hands into his pockets. "I can smell the black magic from here, how did you two not notice the red glow?" He turned to Soul.

"I guess we don't look up often?" Spirit sighed and nodded in understanding. "Soul Eater, thank you."

Soul nodded in returned, understanding just what he meant.

"I'll let you know when to come by for information." Stein lit a cigarette and pulled Spirit along with him.

Maka sighed and closed the front door locking it. "Now I can shower in peace."

"Sure, I'll be watching tv if you need me... just scream." Maka rolled her eyes and punched his arm. "...you look...good, Soul."

"Umm...thanks?" Soul could feel himself blushing at her acknowledgment, "You okay Maka?"

"Yeah... I'm just tired..."

"Well umm, you should probably go shower... you'll feel better."

"Yeah..." She nodded and started to walk up the stairs, "Hey Maka.."

"Yeah?"

"Could... we talk about the other day when you get out?"

"Well what do you mean?"

"When you kissed me here in the floor."

She whipped around with a new fight in her eyes, "I did not! You kissed me! Soul!"

"I was waiting on you to start the chant and you just...looked at me with those eyes..." He stepped toward her and slumped his shoulders in mockery. He took another step and his nose touched hers, "You remember?"

She was on her tip toes at this point, looking into his eyes and occasionally glancing at his lips. The back of his hand brushed against her jawline gently, "I could taste your soul..."

Maka rolled her eyes as she started to come down from the high he placed her on. "You're so..." She had a hard time completing her sentence when he took her bottom lip in between his teeth and gave a slight tug. She whimpered lightly. He smirked with sharp red eyes and teased her lips with his mouth gently. Before Maka had been able to react she was between him and the living room wall.

His abs rolled under her finger tips smoothly as he deepened the kiss just begging her to let loose a little, but before things heated up too quickly, Soul broke the kiss and kissed her forehead before he looked into her eyes. "You going to lay down here on the couch with me tonight?" Maka nodded and gave him another kiss not realizing how much she had liked it before. He pulled her back to reality only a few moments later and took a step back, "Go ahead and shower, I'm going to go and get the Aloe. You're going to burn up with that back tonight."

She nodded and headed up stairs to the shower. She turned the water on and crawled in not wanting to crawl back out. It had been such an eventful day and she had just relaxed in the fact that they had made some progress in the witch case. Maybe Stein could determine what kind of magic had been in place or even track the user by analyzing the artifact. All in due time, but for now how in the world was she going to prevent herself from falling in love with Soul Eater Evans?


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter Eleven **

_Into the fire._

* * *

Until they were able to locate the witch life, had to go on. Stein and Spirit worked odd hours to try and locate the details concerning the previously planted object while Soul Eater and Maka completed mission after mission to pass the time. Not all of these missions were together, however, Maka had recently been assigned a mission with Kidd. During this mission they would have to travel to a far off town on a lead concerning a brothel of witches. Yes, a brothel. Even Kidd needed a level headed woman to keep him on track, he was a man after all and being Death's son didn't make him immortal to just urges and human nature.

The getting there had been the hardest part. It was such a long journey for the both of them and they had yet to decide who was going to succumb to the title of weapon during this journey. It was a pre-unspoken rule though it seemed. They would use Death's weapons and Maka's sense of know how, but if the going were to get tough they would simply have to revert to their last resort in which Kidd would use Maka as a weapon.

Oddly, Maka was sent without a weapon of her own. This was odd to her not because she wasn't used to it but mostly because there was no need for it. Before, she had mastered completing missions without a weapon because she didn't have a choice but to become her own weapon, however now Soul was back and there was no need to practice this anymore. They needed to practice matching wavelengths so they would be ready if that witch ever showed her face again. It seemed as though lately the pair had been too busy on missions to find the time to spend sparing or re-bonding. Maka couldn't help but feel like this was being done purposely.

"We have fifteen minutes, prepare to disguise yourself. This brothel of witches is sure to sense a weaponless meister, you may be a target. As for me, they are used to seeing meisters and weapons walk in and out of here. I'll just not act suspicious."

After he'd received a nod from Maka, he pulled the hood of his black cloak over his head. "Let's make this quick, in and out just like that."

* * *

"So you're really comfortable with Maka going alone with Kidd?"

"Sure, I trust 'er."

"Yeah but do you trust Kidd too?"

"Don't have to."

"Stop planting the seed of doubt, Black Star." Tsubaki interrupted, "It's none of our business, besides Maka is strong."

"Pshh, still not her biggest fan."

"And that is supposed to be something new?" Tsubaki shook her head and crossed her arms.

"Let's just get this mission over with?" Soul sighed and placed his arms behind his head.

"Yeah, lets."

"Ever since we came back home you two have been at odds with each other, Black Star... Soul Eater, what's going on?"

"Literally nothing, just bored maybe..."

"Boredom? I think Black Star is jealous." Tsubaki suggested.

"Umm excuse you? Jealous of what? That...thing?"

"You used to respect and love Maka...now she's a thing?"

"I don't like the way she talks to Soul and I respect him more."

"That is still none of your business, Black Star...It's not like she came at you and said it. Wasn't even concerning you, whatever is going on it is between her and Soul."

"Besides," Soul Eater quietly interjected, "I've said some pretty ugly things to her, you just haven't heard them."

"Still..."

"I can take care of myself, stop trying to coddle me and stop talking bad about her like that. Sure we fight, more than we used to I'll grant it that, but Maka is still Maka to me. We picked up where we left off and that's okay... I would even start over if she wanted me too..." He mumbled the last part under his breath but Tsubaki heard him, only she didn't make a point to express it.

"Whatever guys, so what was this mission again? Witches?"

"Actually, Death sent us to check on a small village or town ...not far from the city. Supposedly they are being haunted by something. We have to determine what's going on and whether or not its folktale, superstition, or witchcraft because we all know haunting's aren't real, right?"

"I don't know about that Soul..." Tsuabaki looked slightly creeped out.

"Oh come one, Tsubaki. You can't be serious?" Black Star crossed his arms over his chest.

"I just…don't believe in messing with those things..."

"Well...too late now." Soul Eater shrugged.

"Don't worry Tsubaki, Black Star won't let the big bad ghoul guy get you." Black Star teased with a grin.

"Black Star! Just shut up!"

* * *

The two story brothel looked like an abandoned building during the day, but at night it was the loudest, brightest, and most charismatic place in the small village front. Under Kidd's orders she stayed low and observed from afar as a pedestrian. He made it clear that she was not to infiltrate on any given circumstance besides his signal.

She wasn't stupid, they were clearly outnumbered at that point. It looked like the mission had been a plain recon, not an infiltration. They needed to regroup and force stronger battle strategies. There had been a reason these witches weren't worried about suppressing their presence. They openly used magic with the public and passersby without fear of being targeted by meisters or death scythes, who knew such a witch haven had been this close to Death City.

She caught a glimpse of Kidd giving her the signal to infiltrate the large brothel. Quietly, she hesitated. He wanted her to go now? They were severely outnumbered and in desperate need of reinforcements. Did he have a death wish or something? As if noting her hesitation, Kidd went in ahead of her turning tables and breaking windows in the process. Screams were coming from inside the brothel, both men and women. Was Kidd crazy? Well she had to back him up now.

Maka pelted through the nearest window and followed his lead in cleansing the area of the surrounding witches. It wasn't very easy either, there were high level witches to deal with and Kidd seemed to have no concern for his fellow teammates, his weapons included, as he threw himself in harm's way. Maka did her best to keep his back and deflect any attacks from that point but it wasn't enough to protect herself.

One, two, three, no…four. Four hits in less than three minutes. They had to get out of there.

"There is too many, let's go!"

"No! You can but I won't run!"

"Kidd! You idiot!"

Five. A gash across her exposed back had sent her to her knees in blood spatters. Her blood covered Kidd's face and ran down her arms pooling around her knees. "Get...out of here..." As her eyes went dark and she had been left with the sight of Kidd's back escaping through a shattered window.

"Leave her! Get him!"

"Mistress, what of our home?!"

"Burn it to the ground!"

Long after her vision had failed her she felt heat being emitted from the hardwood below her. Smoke entered her lungs and the blood encasing her body began to heat up. Maka had one last card and she was certain she would die.

When you're a meister without a weapon you must learn to accommodate for that missing extremity, that is exactly what she did. She read books and she learned to take care of herself emotionally and physically without the help of a weapon. She succeeded in Death Academy by herself. No, she didn't create a death scythe but she accomplished what no other had.

Her bruised lips mumbled a low chant and she had been encased in a dull red light. It was an enchantment she learned from a useless book in the library. A book with no author as she was a meister with no weapon. She smiled at the thought before the entire brothel came down.

* * *

"I can't believe they were seeing the shadow of a chicken the entire time." Tsubaki stared at the ground as they exited the small village. "I mean…really...You're serious?"

"I'm just glad we got it over with." Black Star stretched his arms behind his head. "Right, Soul?"

"Yeah."

The three walked carefully on the narrow path back to Death City. Tsubaki stopped and looked around, "You guys sense that?"

"Someone is coming..." Black Star held his hand out and Tsubaki materialized into his blade.

"Is that?" Soul squinted, "It's Kidd and he's being tailed."

"They're witches, I can smell them."

"Three... maybe more... Looks like he needs back up." The three agreed before heading out to meet Kidd in the nearest clearing just a mile off the path. "Looks like we'll have our hands full! Black Star lunged into the battle with Tsubaki raised high above his head.

"Black Star, I don't see Maka anywhere!" Tsubaki had seemed genuinely worried, "She doesn't have a weapon she could be hurt!"

The battle continued to heat up as Tsubaki repeatedly expressed her concerns. A snarling witch mocked her pettily. "But Black Star... Maaaka.." She laughed almost menacingly, "No need to worry, I'm sure she's bled out by now or maybe even burned to death."

"Look!" Black Star looked to the smoke filled sky and back at Kidd. "Kidd!" He was only ignored. Soul, who was locked in a battle of his own while also doing everything he could not to panic, gave Black Star a pleading look. "Leave Tsubaki and we will handle this, go find her!"

"You sure?" The young ninja's eyes widened at the worried expression on his friend's face.

"Please just hurry, I can smell her blood...!" With that being said, he shot himself off in a blue streak through the woods and toward the smoke. All the possibilities of what could have become of Maka ran through his mind and he found himself cringing and fighting back tears. He did care about her, though he often said different. But he wasn't sure if he was saddened by the idea of her being injured or worse or the thought of telling Soul Eater.

"Maka!" He approached the collapsed and burning building. "Maka you in there!" He screamed as he ran through the burning rubble. "Maka please! Don't do this!" With black gloved hands he turned pieces of burning wood looking for her. "Maka!"

Finally, he came upon a dull red light barely noticeable beneath one of the strong pillars of the brothel. It was Maka and she was glowing dimly. "Smart, smart girl..." He said as he pulled her out gently and carried her away from the smoke. "With all the blood you've lost we need to get you back to the city... but Soul and... No, let's go." He had wrapped her in a long black poncho he pulled from his pouch and took off at top speed toward the city.

* * *

"I can't believe this; you did the right thing Black Star. If you'd stayed and fought she would've certainly died."

"How is she now? And that red light?"

"She's in critical condition, not out of the woods yet. But you were correct, she used a fireproof enchantment to protect her unconscious body from the flames at the brothel. Probably her last conscious move."

"Soul and Tsubaki… and Kidd?"

"They just crossed the City border, all are fine."

"Why didn't Kidd retreat instead of plunging in like that? None of this would've happened."

"I'm not sure, but why don't we ask him."


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter Twelve**

_Three days._

* * *

Soul Eater was upset to the point that he knew it was impossible to talk to Kidd about what had happened. He must have been boiling over with anger at his very seams because Tsubaki and Black Star didn't even attempt to comfort the situation. Black Star himself looked disturbed as Kidd recounted the events leading up to the previous fight.

Soul Eater struggled to listen to his words as well while he leaned against the hospital's hallway. Tsubaki couldn't swear to it, but she was pretty sure she could see a slight sway in Soul's figure, almost as if he had been rocking back and forth.

His deep red eyes focused on the tiled floor because he knew if he looked at the man before him he would do something they would both regret later. This was different than a childish, jealous skirmish between them. This man led his partner down a suicide trench and had no remorse for it whatsoever. And for what? To kill a witch?

"Soul Eater, you should go home and get some rest, you look rough. I'll stay with Maka tonight." Spirit interrupted Kidd's explanation, clearly he had been sick of hearing it as well. "Soul?" He waved his hand in front of him cautiously.

"Yeah, I'm here."

"Good, go on home."

He crossed his arms and pushed himself from the wall, "Yeah."

"You don't have to stay with Maka tonight, Spirit. I will stay with her." Kidd had offered in a demanding manner. "Besides, it was our mission, we should go over what went wrong." Soul tightened his fists at his sides.

"Like hell you will."

"Soul…" Tsubaki breathed out and Black Star silenced her with a look that said he stood with Soul on the matter.

"You stay as far away from her as possible without leaving this city."

"Soul Eater all of this was an accident, why are you so hostile?" Kidd furrowed his brows.

"It was no accident; this was a recon mission. Now let's all assume you know what recon means for a brief moment. You led a weaponless meister into a death pit, for what? What was so important that you could not come back and properly report everything you had seen and officially completed you mission? Because YOUR missions had NOT been to launch an all-out assault on a brothel full of witches, if it were your company wouldn't have been a WEAPONLESS meister."

Spirit had felt the room heat up the instant Soul opened his mouth. "Why did you choose to attack instead of requesting back up, Kidd?" Spirit added.

"I know full well what my mission was and I executed the proper actions to eradicate those witches from existence. These things happen all the time, hell there are a lot of people not as lucky as Maka. Many die-"

"And she was going to! She still might die in this hospital, in there in that bed!" Soul took a threatening step toward Kidd. "You led a suicide mission for yourself and left her to die in a burning building."

"She told me to leave! I was in no position to argue!"

"You didn't want to argue because she was doing exactly what you wanted!"

Spirit had been taken aback by the hint of accusation in Soul's voice. "Soul I agree what he did was cowardice but let's be clear here, you're not possibly thinking this was orchestrated on purpose to ...kill... Maka, are you?"

Spirit received no direct answer. He was only privileged enough to witness the deepest foreshadowing he'd ever heard.

"You stay away from her. If anything happens to her-, if my meister dies in that hospital room I will personally drag you straight to hell."

* * *

He'd sat at her bedside for the first few hours that day, and when the evening rolled around he had found himself slid in beside her. She just turned and laid on him as natural as possible.

Three days she had been in the hospital, in critical condition obviously. Those were three days that Soul didn't sleep. He didn't even leave the hospital to snack. Spirit and Stein would bring him a generous snack on their breaks because they felt awful for the boy. Spirit spent the time he could talking to Soul and waiting for his pale, still daughter to wake up.

Soul Eater Evans had been a sight to behold. Spirit had brought him a change of clothes so he didn't smell entirely bad, but no change of clothes could save the bags under his eyes. While Maka slept he had been awake the entire time counting her breaths and listening to her pulse. He was paler than ever and the dark rings surrounding his eyes gave his iris's more vibrant colors.

"Has the doctor been in today?"

"Not yet."

There was a brief pause between the two before Spirit cleared his throat.

"You…" After contemplating silently, he found that he was unable to form a coherent sentence befitting his general question. Soul Eater just arched a brow at him. "I?"

"I…"

"What?" Soul Eater looked even more confused at Spirit, "Just come out with it."

"You were the one, this whole time."

"Excuse me?"

"I realize there are things that I cannot protect my daughter from so please don't think of me as a fool for trying so hard. But, I've been thinking about her protection since the day she was born and…well I always thought I would have a plan to protect her from…" He sighed after not being able to make enough sense to uphold a conversation.

"I get what you're saying."

"You do?"

"Yeah, it's not foolish. You're a dad, it's sort of what you do."

"I want to protect her from everything, but I ended up hurting her the most."

"That may be partially true, but some things can't really be helped. We have to go through stuff in life to get to where we need to be. We may not realize it but things that affect us also have an effect on our loved ones, and all the people around us. We help shape them too, into who they are. You shaped your daughter into who she is now. She's strong and … I guess you kind of taught her how to do that, you and your wife. I mean, if that makes sense..." Soul quickly recounted what he was saying and decided it had been a tad bit uncool coming from him.

Spirit didn't seem annoyed at his words, if anything he looked surprised. After a few moments he stood and headed for the door. "You want anything? I'm going out for some grub."

"Milkshake me."

"Gotcha."

* * *

When Maka woke there had been no big crowd surrounding her like they did in movies. No sobbing friends begging for her to open her eyes, just a dim hospital room. She could see out the window it was night time and the dim light was coming from a bedside lamp. She looked up at the figure attached to her side, the one she had been laying on for what seemed like an eternity and he just smiled down at her. She smiled up at him and he almost melted beneath her.

"Hey cool cat, whatcha' got there?" She sleepily referred to the pieces of music paper in his hands.

"Nothin' really." He placed the paper on the small stand beside them and wrapped an arm around her being, gently.

"Guess I took a hard hit this time?"

He nodded down at her with a more serious look on his face.

"And judging by that look... I almost died, didn't I?" Her voice had been weak and shook from the strain of her forcing herself to speak.

He nodded again and ran a hand through her hair before smiling. "Glad you're awake, Maka."

"How did you know I would wake up."

"I mean; it would've been pretty uncool of you not to."

She gave a soft laugh and pressed the call button to notify her nurse she was awake. "Now, let's go home."


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter Thirteen **

_If I'd never seen your face, I probably wouldn't be this way._

* * *

It had taken more than a few days for Maka to actually get to go home. The hospital had to stabilize her blood pressure and for some reason that was a difficult task.

Once she had made it home, Soul made it very clear to her that he didn't want to see her anywhere near Kidd. His exact words had been,

_"I'm not your daddy, I ain't tellin' ya' what to do but don't, DO NOT, let me catch him near you. If you want to hang out with him, that's you. But I'm making you a promise right now. I will absolutely turn this city on its head if I see him around you again."_

Maka would've been lying if she said she hadn't been turned on by his over protectiveness, but she hadn't wanted to purposely start a fight. Besides, she had been a little pissed off at Kidd herself for plunging into that situation like he had. Not only that, Soul Eater had his suspicions about the act and over the years that they had been together Maka had learned to trust Soul's instincts sometimes even more so than her own.

In an attempt to keep herself in shape, Maka had slipped into a pair of black shorts and a tube top. She jogged all the way to the city's local gym and by the time she had arrived sweat had drenched her slim form.

Her dad, Spirit, surprisingly spent a lot of time in the gym and had been there to greet her.

"Maka! Glad to see you out, baby."

"Glad to be out." She stretched and popped her back.

"You come here to train?"

"Yup."

Spirit hesitated, "Well… Maka are you sure you're up to this?"

Her green eyes had narrowed onto him, "Oh I'm ready."

Maka had trained the most she could with Soul, but the kind of training she received from her dad was different. His training had been what kept her in the Academy back in the days when Soul was gone and it wasn't something easily picked back up once sat down. It had been nearly two years since her last, harsh training session with Spirit and he had been surprised to see her reopen that closed door.

"You're getting pretty serious about this aren't you?"

Maka assumed her best fighting stance and raised her fists, "Dunno' but we're about to find out."

Spirit had tied his hair back and met her in the center of the training room. "I won't go easy on you, Maka."

He could've sworn a smile had crossed her face before she had thrown a wind splitting kick that he'd barely managed to dodge.

Sometimes Spirit thought she had just come to the gym to beat her frustrations out on him, but then when he sparred with her he could tell otherwise. When he had dodged a hit of collided elbows with her he could feel her soul seep from her body and into him. It had been almost like reading a book by exchanging blows. The more he had sparred with Maka, the more he had understood her. If Soul Eater really wanted to get to know his meister this was how he needed to do it, but then again there weren't many people stupid enough to stand toe to toe with Maka in this state.

These training sessions had usually lasted six hours a day, however Maka hadn't left the gym until at least eight hours had passed.

Spirit had been completely killed but he didn't want to show that much to her. Couldn't have her thinking she was too much for her old man.

Maka had sighed and walked home in complete content with the sweat she had previously earned. She smiled and inwardly laughed at the thought of Soul being able to smell her before she even stepped within a block of their home. It had been just like before, minus Soul being there, when she would come home from her vigorous training session with her father and she had felt ten times healthier.

Maka had at least wanted to beef up some before she stepped into any weight room with Soul Eater. She had to keep up with him and learn how to re-wield him. She had recalled how heavy he had been the last time she tried. That had been what pushed her to re-train with her father, there had been absolutely no way she would have a weapon she couldn't even wield.

Once she had arrived home she grabbed something to drink from the fridge and made her way over to the stair case. She had paused for a brief moment after having thought she had heard something but, quickly, she brushed it off and headed up to the shower.

It hadn't been until later that night she realized that she had indeed heard something. As she had laid in bed staring at the ceiling frozen in an emotion she couldn't quite pin point, she could hear what sounded like a the piano in the lowest level of the house. This pianist had been absolutely amazing and thoroughly skilled. Maka had been able to tell by the smooth transition between each key. The melody had been coming up through the tiled floor and nearly put her to sleep. There had been only one person she'd known of that could play a piano with such grace. But this person had wordlessly sworn his hands away from piano keys a long time ago.

Quietly, Maka had emerged from her bed and tip toed down the stairs. The closer she had gotten to the laundry room the louder the music became. There had been a staircase in the laundry room she'd never been down before. Once she had stood at the top of said stairs she could see a shadow. Slowly and carefully, she had maneuvered her way down the stairs but only halfway. Just enough so that she could peak and see what had been going on.

Deep red eyes were scanning a thin sheet of paper before them and long fingers had been moving seamlessly between keys. Maka's breath had caught in her throat at the sight of Soul Eater rolling the piano at his will so expertly.

However, that hadn't been the only thing that shocked her. Fear had struck her heart heavily after she'd obtained a closer look at his features. His eyes were somewhat larger and a darker red, his skin had seemed paler than usual, and he had been grinning like an idiot. Usually Maka had loved to see Soul Eater smile despite his sharp teeth, but this had been different. This had been a smile she didn't recognize, he seemed absolutely mad.

She'd seen just about enough and backed herself up the stairs until her heel missed a step and had caused her to stumble. She had managed to catch herself but such a small noise had caused the music to stop. Maka gasped and looked straight into the deep red eyes before her. Soul Eater had sat there slumped over as he gazed up at her. His face had been expressionless and that frightened her even further.

"…S-soul?"

He stared at her without blinking for a moment before he'd opened his mouth. Before he could really say anything Maka had let out a loud scream and had turned heel to run up the stairs and to the laundry room. Soul jumped to his feet and hurried behind her. "Maka- Wait!"

"You're mad! You're mad! Stay away from me!"

"Maka come here! Stop!"

He had run down the hallway after her and once they had reached the stairs he was caught up enough to catch her ankle in one large hand.

"No! NO! Let me go!"

"Maka! I'm not mad! Will you stop and come here!"

"Get away from me!"

"MAKA!" He had pulled her from the stair case and threw her on the couch where he could pin her down easily. Maka had struggled and hit him several times before he'd gotten her fully restrained on the couch.

By the time she had stopped struggling they had both been out of breath, "Now, will you listen to me?"

Maka stared up at him and bit her lip. "I am not mad. I am perfectly fine. You're safe, I promise I would never hurt you."

Maka had felt her heart in her throat, "H-how do I know?"

There had been a window of silence between the two before Soul had spoken again. "You don't, you'll just have to trust me. Like I trusted you." He had a point there.

"…Then..w-what was that..what I saw?"

Soul hadn't looked too eager to give her an explanation but after he sighed and cupped her face in his hands he began to talk. "I have bouts of weakness from time to time. During this time, I will sit and play the piano for god knows how long; until the bout has passed over me. Yes, it is a sign of madness, but in my case it's a side effect. It's just something I've dealt with since the initial infection of the black blood."

Maka had looked at him in a concerned fashion as he continued. "But, I will not hurt anyone. Well… not my friends anyway. For example, when I had seen you on the staircase just now, I pulled right out of it like it was nothing. "

"What if I weren't your friend?"

"Then… yeah, I can be dangerous. But I traveled with Black Star and Tsubaki for a long time and I didn't have a piano to help deal with these spells I would take. I was much worse then and I never laid a finger on either of them."

"You…think of me as a friend?"

He looked down at her with his mouth hung slightly open. He hadn't known exactly what to say to that. He'd closed his mouth and gave a half smile before he laid his forehead against hers. Maka had smiled in return after being convinced he wasn't still mad and puckered her lips cutely. "I'm sorry I completely freaked out and lost my shit."

She closed her eyes and waited. Soul had arched his eyebrow before he'd cracked a full smile and attacked her face with kisses. It hadn't stopped there either, his kisses moved from her face to her neck as she thrashed and laughed. "Soul!"

"Never!"

"Get off me!" She laughed out and pushed against him, apparently she had been severely ticklish.

"No, you deserve this!"

"No I don't, you cruel ass!" Neither had she been much of a touchy, kissy person. He had been invading her bubble, but for him she had decided to make an exception.

* * *

The following evening Maka had made her way to the gym once again. Spirit couldn't help but notice the grin on her face seemed to be never ending.

"You seem happy today." She shrugged yet her grin had not faltered.

"Yeah, I guess so."

"Something happen?"

She blushed and shrugged again. "Not really I don't guess."

"Alright, well let's get started."

These proceedings had taken place for nearly three weeks before Maka had felt comfortable with the idea of trying to resonate with Soul once again. She had known, however, that she was nowhere near his level of power and there had been much work she had yet to do.

Maka had noticed on a side note that Soul hadn't been lying after all. She had asked her father what he had known about the bouts Soul Eater had spoken of and he confirmed it. He told her that Stein had witnessed them himself and labeled them harmless unless one had been a stranger. So what? She had to keep him away from strangers now? Like some kind of harnessed dog? Spirit had proceeded to tell her that it wasn't her problem, it was Soul's and to not worry about it. Well that hadn't been entirely true, what if he'd lost it during a battle and attacked the wrong person because he hadn't been familiar with them? What was she to do then? Spirit had agreed and directed her to speak to Stein about it but she had opted out because she knew Stein had his hands full with her case.

Oddly, she hadn't heard anything from Kidd. No apologetic scene or flowers had been delivered to her like he usually did. She had at least a dozen rose bushes at her old home from his pointless deliveries. He had just disappeared, much like Crona had. This concerned Maka a tad bit. She had missed Crona like no other and in the back of her mind she worried about him constantly. Something was defiantly going on and he was involved long before anyone even knew. That witch had mentioned him herself. Was he dead? No, there was no way. She had sighed and brushed it off her mind before her emotions ran out of control again.

Maka had begun her long stroll home after her recent visit to the gym. She had been lost in thought and hadn't even noticed Black Star come up beside her. "Yo, Maka.."

She had jumped slightly and he arched a brow at her, "Oh hey, sorry I was thinking."

"Better not do too much of that."

"Yeah, anyway, what is it?"

"Huh?"

"You..needed something?"

"Oh… um, well." He scratched the back of his neck and swallowed hard, "I'm glad you're okay. Just wanted to say that I would've been… pretty pissed if you'd died back there."

Maka hadn't been able to help the shock in her expression and voice, "Oh?"

"I mean… I would've hated to tell Soul you'd …"

"I'm sure someone else would have."

Black Star had then nodded a bit and scratched the back of his head, "Well… just don't do that anymore, okay?"

Maka had given him a weird look, was he worried about her? Did Black Star actually like her? Not in that fashion but as a fellow meister. "Umm, yeah I'll try not to."

"Uhh, and. .." He cleared his throat, "If you need me, ever. Just summon me or something." He handed her a paper tsubaki flower with a blue kanji painted on the petal.

"That's what this does?"

"Yeah, it's a ninja trick. Just put a drop of blood on the flower and yell out whatever kanji is painted on it and boom, there I'll be."

"Oh, that's so neat." She had found herself struggling to come up with words, "Thank you, Black Star." When she had looked up Black Star was gone. Typical ninja meister, always kept her on her toes. She had then weaved the tsubaki flower into her single ponytail gently and continued her walk home.

* * *

**AN: I've been editing and updating things a lot lately guys! So sorry! Just trying to catch up! **


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